Energy Gang - What's Behind China's Zero-Carbon Aim?

What's Behind China's Zero-Carbon Aim?

10/03/20 • 51 min

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China, the country currently pouring the most carbon into the atmosphere, is making a promise to get to zero emissions – 40 years from now. Is it a breakthrough? Or is it a plan to keep burning coal? Is it both? We’ll hash it out.

Then, the Governor of California wants to stop selling any new cars that run on gasoline – in 15 years. It’s ambitious, can it be done? Is it legal? What will that take?

And last, a flurry of serious commitments from top American brands – Walmart, Google, Apple. Each of them is super challenging for a different reason. But also groundbreaking. We’ll dig in.

Resources:

The Guardian: China Pledges to Become Carbon Neutral Before 2060
Bloomberg: China’s Top Climate Scientists Map Out Path to 2060 Goal
L.A. Times: Newsom Orders 2035 Phaseout of Gas-Powered Vehicles
Axios: Walmart Aims for Zero Greenhouse Gas Emissions by 2040
GTM: Google Pledges 24/7 Carbon-Free Energy by 2030

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Then, the Governor of California wants to stop selling any new cars that run on gasoline – in 15 years. It’s ambitious, can it be done? Is it legal? What will that take?

And last, a flurry of serious commitments from top American brands – Walmart, Google, Apple. Each of them is super challenging for a different reason. But also groundbreaking. We’ll dig in.

Resources:

The Guardian: China Pledges to Become Carbon Neutral Before 2060
Bloomberg: China’s Top Climate Scientists Map Out Path to 2060 Goal
L.A. Times: Newsom Orders 2035 Phaseout of Gas-Powered Vehicles
Axios: Walmart Aims for Zero Greenhouse Gas Emissions by 2040
GTM: Google Pledges 24/7 Carbon-Free Energy by 2030

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Previous Episode

How a Changed Supreme Court Could Derail Climate Progress

Does the loss of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg mean the future of federal climate policy is in jeopardy? What will a changed Supreme Court mean for climate change, and for the all-important endangerment finding? The Gang weighs in.

Then, the great plastic cover-up. How important are plastics to the profits of fossil fuel companies? We dive into an important investigation from NPR and Frontline into how fossil fuel companies hoodwinked the public on plastics recycling.

Then last, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is out with an important and long-awaited policy that opens the door for all types of distributed energy – hot water heaters, batteries, rooftop solar, electric cars – to feed energy into the grid in the aggregate. Are we finally there?

Recommended reading, viewing:

Scientific American: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Leaves a Nuanced Legacy on Env. Issues
Politico: Ginsburg Left a Long Environmental Legacy
Axios: The Climate Stakes of the Supreme Court Fight
Guardian: Oil industry lobbies US to help weaken Kenya’s strong stance on plastic waste
Fast Company: Surprise: Your cleaning supplies are full of fossil fuel
Frontline: Plastic Wars
NPR: How big oil misled the public into believing plastic would be recycled
Greentech Media: ‘Game-Changer’ FERC Order Opens Grid Markets to DER
Houston Chronicle: FERC opens grid to power aggregators
Twitter: Peter Cavan’s thread
Twitter: Ari Peskoe’s thread

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Next Episode

Exxon Is Losing the Energy Transition

What does it mean when the world’s largest generator of wind and solar outpaces the most iconic oil company in market value? We’re talking about NextEra Energy and ExxonMobil. What does the flip tell us about the energy transition?

Plus, reporters at Bloomberg got their hands on documents that show ExxonMobil plans to pretty significantly ramp up emissions in the coming years. Is this the planet’s most recalcitrant company?

Then, the flattening of hydrocarbon growth will change global political power. But do we really know how yet? We’ll discuss a new piece from Jason Bordoff about the surprising geopolitics of energy.

Lastly, a lot of manufacturing relies on very high heat. Are there ways to reach those temperatures cleanly? We’ll look at some new developments in the steel industry.